How does a concept car go from drawing board to show stand? Most start with a couple-hundred-word design brief, explaining what executives are looking for, how it fits the brand, the size, the concept, the platform …The brief for the stunning Buick Avenir was considerably briefer, just nine words long: “Find a vision for the ultimate expression...... Read More »

Automakers and suppliers spent an estimated $300 million building out displays for this year's Detroit auto show. Scott Kellner, vice president of marketing for display maker George P. Johnson Co., says display spending is getting smarter, not larger.... Read More »

Walking among this year's crop of new models and design concepts at the Detroit auto show, you can't help thinking of Kirk Douglas.
That Kirk Douglas chin with the prominent cleft. Hollywood calls such features "character lines" -- a crease, a fold, a wrinkle that serves no real function other than to give character to a person. And they work on cars, too.
At the show this year, the creases are standing out of side panels like folded paper. Body lines are swooping through freshly minted metal surfaces, leading -- in some cases -- nowhere. One line disappears at mid-door and another starts up elsewhere on a different arc. Go to the Gallery »

Arriving later this year, the Shelby GT350R features the first-ever production V8 from Ford with a flat-plane crankshaft, which Ford says is the most powerful naturally aspirated engine it ever produced, and a specially tuned suspension. It is fitted with revised spring rates and antiroll bars, lower ride height, track-tuned alignment settings, revised bushings and jounce bumpers, cross-axis ball joints in the front suspension, and revised calibration controlling the MagneRide dampers. Go to the Gallery »

Ford's GT is an ultra-high-performance supercar that serves as a technology showcase for EcoBoost performance, aerodynamics and lightweight carbon fiber construction, the automaker says. Ford says the GT will be available by 2020. Go to the Gallery »

The all-electric Bolt is a concept car not currently slated for production, but CEO Mary Barra said the company is committed to developing an affordable, long-range EV. GM can develop the car in as little as 18 months. Go to the Gallery »

The Buick Avenir -- French for "future" -- features a long hood, Buick's signature "sweep spear" crease along the body and a sloping rear deck that pays homage to the Riviera and other iconic Buick's of yore. General Motors executives say the concept previews Buick's styling down the road, but also hints that a new flagship sedan is on the table. Go to the Gallery »

The pickup will come in two sizes -- the Titan and the Titan XD. The Titan XD Crew Cab, which will be the first to reach the market late this year, will have a 5.0-liter V-8 Cummins diesel engine that produces 310 hp at 3,200 rpm and 555 pounds-feet of torque at 1,600 rpm. The configuration will also carry a heavy-duty six-speed Aisin automatic transmission, and have available electronic locking rear differential. It will claim more than 2,000 pounds of maximum payload capacity, and more than 12,000 pounds of maximum towing capacity. Go to the Gallery »

The Q60 features styling elements previewed in the full-size Q80 Inspiration concept coupe, which was shown at the 2014 Paris Motor Show, while also incorporating design elements from the Eau Rouge sports sedan concept. Go to the Gallery »

The 2016 Volt is a clean-sheet redesign of the ground-breaking first iteration that went on sale in late 2010. It ill go about 50 miles on an electric charge, up from 38 on today's model, as General Motors looks to broaden the plug-in hybrid's appeal beyond tech geeks. Go to the Gallery »

Only 400 or so of the hand-built, lightweight, mid-engined coupes with the removable tops will be available each year across North America, with no plans to expand production of the car that takes a minimum of six weeks to build, according to Reid Bigland, head of Alfa Romeo in the U.S. Go to the Gallery »

The C350 hybrid has a high-voltage lithium ion battery with a total capacity of 6.2 kwh. The water-cooled battery weighs 220 pounds and is mounted in a sheet-steel housing underneath the rear axle. This location helps improve crash safety, trunk space and vehicle handling, Mercedes-Benz said. Go to the Gallery »

The 2016 Cadillac CTS-V -- the third generation of the track-ready midsize sport sedan -- will rip from 0 to 60 mph in under four seconds and hit a top speed of 200 mph. Under the hood is a 6.2-liter supercharged V-8 engine that produces 640 hp, up from 556 hp in the last generation. It arrives in U.S. showrooms in late summer. Go to the Gallery »

The latest Mini John Cooper Works, debuting at the 2015 Detroit auto show, is equipped with a 4-cylinder turbo engine, sports suspension including Brembo sports brake system and special light alloy wheels. The John Cooper Works aerodynamics kit features particularly large air inlets on the front section of the vehicle as well as a unique, sports-car inspired interior. Go to the Gallery »

BMW has freshened all three of its 6-series variants that will debut at the 2015 Detroit auto show and go on sale in the second quarter of 2015. The two-door coupe and convertible and the four-door Gran Coupe with coupelike styling are niche vehicles for BMW. Go to the Gallery »

BMW has freshened all three of its 6-series variants that will debut at the 2015 Detroit auto show and go on sale in the second quarter of 2015. The two-door coupe and convertible and the four-door Gran Coupe with coupelike styling are niche vehicles for BMW. Go to the Gallery »

Audi plans a world debut for the Audi Q7 at the 2015 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. By reducing the size slightly and constructing the body with a mixture of high-strength steel and aluminum, the three-row SUV drops 716 pounds. Go to the Gallery »

Metro Detroit, the automotive capital of the world, ironically isn't a hotbed for mobility upstarts, but several efforts are under way in the auto industry to help develop more transportation startups and improve the industry's risk tolerance.... Read More »

ARLENA SAWYERS: When analysts who examine used vehicles and establish prices for them look at an all-new or redesigned car or pickup, they study exterior styling, engine specs and technical innovations. The also weigh factors such as price, incentives, competitors and deliveries to rental fleets.... Read More »

No supercar for you! At least, not until Jerry Seinfeld takes a test drive. Acura will forgo advertising in this year's Super Bowl on Feb. 1 even though it has a production-version NSX for enthusiasts to order for the second half of the year.... Read More »

Automotive News walked the floor of the 2015 Detroit auto show with Paul Snyder, a former Honda and Ford designer who is now chair of transportation design at the College for Creative Studies. Watch him break down three of the most intriguing vehicles from the show.... Watch The Video »

With more than 40 production cars and concepts introduced, there is no shortage of interesting, technically advanced and noteworthy coupes, sedans and light trucks -- even autonomous wheels -- this week at the Detroit auto show. Here's a closer look at five key cars and light trucks on the floor.... Read More »

When Honda engineers pitched the idea of a revived NSX sports car to President Takanobu Ito, it was just a few weeks after Japan's March 11, 2011, earthquake. The appetite for pricey exotic cars was understandably limited.... Read More »

The redesigned Lincoln MKX takes much of the same formula that led to a successful first year for the MKC crossover and applies it to a larger package, at a time when utility vehicles are booming.... Read More »

The hot-selling Ram pickup lineup will expand to 10 trim versions this year with the addition of the 2015 Ram 1500 Rebel, featuring dramatically different exterior styling, bigger tires and off-road ready equipment.... Read More »

A supercar showdown has broken out at the Detroit auto show. Ford's glistening blue GT sports car and Honda's racy red Acura NSX hot rod generated buzz at the opening media day of the expo, with partisans picking sides as if the cars were football playoff contenders.... Read More »

Porsche is looking closely into adding a plug-in hybrid version of its iconic 911 sports car, the company's top sales and marketing executive said today at the Automotive News World Congress here.... Read More »

A new kind of Shelby Cobra graced the Detroit auto show floor this week. The twist? It was 3-D printed. The U.S. Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory, a partner of Local Motors -- the company that 3-D printed a car at the show -- demonstrated what can be done with the latest 3-D printing tools.... Read More »

RICHARD JOHNSON: If your calling card is “The Ultimate Driving Machine,” what do you do when the machines drive themselves? How can you reconcile autonomous vehicles with your brand's deep-rooted mission?... Read More »

With three engines -- including a Cummins diesel V-8 -- two frame sizes and three bed lengths, the redesigned Titan coming this fall is Nissan's ambitious new push to become a true contender in the tough full-size pickup market.... Read More »

Alfa Romeo's second completely redesigned vehicle in its $6 billion brand overhaul will be a sedan that might carry the historic Giulia nameplate, top executives with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles hinted Monday.... Read More »

RICHARD JOHNSON: Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson didn't exactly deny a report from China on Sunday that the Swedish brand is considering a US assembly plant, but he wasn't quite embracing it either.... Read More »

The next Chevrolet Volt will have Korean competition. Today at the Detroit auto show, Hyundai revealed its first battery-powered vehicle: a plug-in hybrid version of the Sonata midsize sedan that will go on sale this year.... Read More »

Acura revealed the production version of its NSX sports car at the Detroit auto show today, touting it as an engineering showcase and a significant step in its strategy to reassert itself as a luxury performance brand.... Read More »

General Motors today revealed the concept Bolt electric vehicle, a hatchback with a 200-mile range that is headed for production as GM seeks to cement its leadership position in vehicles with plugs.... Read More »

Redesigning the Nissan Titan has been on Diane Allen's mind ever since she designed the first one. That was back in 2002, when Allen led the California design team to put Nissan into the full-size pickup market in competition with Detroit's automakers.... Read More »

The second-generation Chevrolet Volt will go about 50 miles on an electric charge, up from 38 on today's model, as General Motors looks to broaden the plug-in hybrid's appeal beyond environmentalists and tech geeks.... Read More »

In rectangular space on the Detroit auto show floor about the size of an extended van, Local Motors is using a 3-D printer to create the body of its Strati car in about 44 hours. In a few days, the Strati, which means "layers" in Italian, will be assembled and drivable.... Read More »

NICK BUNKLEY: While most big auto show unveilings are leaked or telegraphed ahead of time, Ford Motor Co. kept its GT supercar mostly a surprise until this morning's introduction in Detroit.... Read More »

Volkswagen is mobilizing an SUV and crossover offensive over the next few years to strengthen its presence in those fast-growing segments and revive the VW brand's sagging U.S. sales. A long-wheelbase Tiguan crossover assembled in North America will arrive in the market in 2017, Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn said in remarks prepared for delivery today.... Read More »

Mercedes-Benz will begin US sales of the C350 plug-in hybrid this fall. The new car is one of 10 plug-in hybrids Mercedes will be launching through 2017, said Thomas Weber, Daimler AG board member for group research and Mercedes-Benz car development.... Read More »

Land Rover will offer a diesel engine in two Range Rover models this year and across its entire lineup in several years. The two vehicles are debuting at the Detroit auto show. They go on sale this fall.... Read More »

Jaguar will enter the cutthroat luxury crossover segment in 2016 with the new F-Pace. The all-wheel-drive crossover will use the same aluminum-intensive architecture as the new XE compact sedan.... Read More »

Buick is getting its first convertible since the Reatta 25 years ago, an effort to inject some fun into a lineup that's been rebuilt with a stable of core models. On the eve of the auto show here, Buick unveiled the 2016 Cascada, a rebadged version of the identically named Opel droptop that debuted in Europe last year.... Read More »

JACLYN TROP: A young, stylish and energetic crowd poured into Detroit's Orchestra Hall on Sunday night for the MAIN Event 20, the de facto kick-off for the North American International Auto Show.... Read More »

Honda President Takanobu Ito will be a notable no-show in Detroit next week when he sends company deputies to unveil a new version of the high-end supercar that helped catapult him into the top job.... Read More »

GM plans to introduce by 2017 an electric car that will travel about 200 miles on a single charge, a person with knowledge of GM's plans said. GM will show a concept of the EV, the Chevrolet Bolt, on Monday.... Read More »

Audi will kick off one of the most aggressive two-year model expansions in the luxury-car industry at the Detroit auto show as the German marque closes in on BMW, which sold a record of more than 2 million cars last year.... Read More »

The newly redesigned GMC Canyon already has a new special edition. The Canyon Nightfall will be offered on both two-wheel-drive and four-wheel-drive SLE crew cab models and will come in Onyx Blac... Read More »

China's Guangzhou Automobile Group will show an autonomous hybrid concept and an SUV at the Detroit auto show Monday afternoon. The autonomous concept, called the Witstar, is powered by a battery and a gasoline engine.... Read More »

Volvo will debut the S60 Cross Country at the Detroit auto show next week. Volvo has increased the sedan's ride height by 2.5 inches and added all-wheel drive. The S60 Cross Country will go on sale in the United States this summer.... Read More »

JAY RAMEY: Will BMW field a production sedan positioned above the 7 series? The decision on whether to move ahead with a production version of the sedan could happen this year as Harald Krueger, who is said to be receptive to the concept of a new range-topping sedan, takes over as CEO, a report says.... Read More »

An F performance version of the Lexus GS sedan will make its world debut at the Detroit auto show, becoming the third mass-produced vehicle to receive Lexus’ high-performance makeover, after the IS F sedan and RC F coupe.... Read More »